Early life

Kourtney Mary Kardashian was born in Beverly Hills, California. Her father, the late Robert George Kardashian (1944–2003), was of Armenian descent, and worked as a lawyer. Her mother, Kristen "Kris" Mary Jenner (born 1955; formerly Kardashian, née Houghton) is of English, Scottish, and Dutch descent and was a homemaker before managing her children's careers. She is the oldest of four children: she has two younger sisters Kimberly Noel "Kim" (born 1980) and Khloé Alexandria (born 1984), and one younger brother Robert Arthur "Rob" Kardashian (born 1987). Kourtney also has two half-sisters from her mother's remarriage, Kendall Nicole (born 1995) and Kylie Kristen Jenner (born 1997).

In April 1991, when Kourtney was 11 years old, her parents divorced and her mother Kris married former Olympian Bruce Jenner. Bruce has four children from previous marriages: sons Burton "Burt", Brandon, Brody, and daughter Cassandra Lyn "Casey" Jenner.

Kourtney attended the Roman Catholic all-girls school Marymount High School in Los Angeles. Following graduation, she moved to Dallas, Texas to attend Southern Methodist University for two years. Kourtney then lived in Tucson, Arizona where she graduated from the University of Arizona with a bachelor's degree in Theatre Arts and a minor in Spanish. Her classmates included Nicole Richie and Luke Walton.

Career

Television career

Kourtney first became known to reality-television audiences on the 2004 series, Filthy Rich: Cattle Drive, on which she earned money for charity. She then became a cast member on Keeping Up with the Kardashians, which depicts the lives of her extended family. She and her sister Khloé starred in their own spinoff reality show, Kourtney and Khloé Take Miami, the first season of which documented their opening of the Miami D-A-S-H location in 2009. In January 2011, Kourtney and Kim Take New York premiered, which documents her and sister Kim's opening their third D-A-S-H store, in New York.

Kourtney made her acting debut with a guest appearance on the ABC soap One Life to Live on March 28, 2011, appearing as attorney Kassandra Kavanaugh. Kourtney, who had grown up watching the soap opera and credited her appearance as a "lifelong dream", had reservations about her acting debut, stating: "I'd thought I'd have two lines. But my script is so long ... I'm not an actress." Her performance, however, was not met with positive reviews from critics.

Business ventures

Kourtney and her mother opened children's clothing boutiques called Smooch in the Los Angeles area and New York City; the boutiques carry the brand Crib Rock Couture. With sisters Kim and Khloe, Kardashian co-owns and operates D-A-S-H, a clothing boutique in Los Angeles, Miami, and New York City.

Kourtney has a number of endorsement contracts with her sisters Khloe and Kim. They are spokeswomen for the diet supplement Quick Trim. In March 2012, Kardashian and her sisters Kim and Khloe were named in a $5 million class action lawsuit against QuickTrim, the weight loss supplement they endorse. The complaint, filed in the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York, accuses the Kardashians (along with QuickTrim's manufacturer, Windmill Health Products; the retailer GNC; and others in the sales and marketing chain) of false and deceptive marketing of the diet aid. The plaintiffs, hailing from several states, brought claims under their respective states' consumer protection laws.

Kourtney also represents the skincare line "PerfectSkin" with her sisters, which was developed by Dr. Ron DiSalvo for Perfect Science Labs. The three sisters also released a jewelry line for Virgins, Saints, and Angels. The 20 piece collection debuted in March 2010. The jewelry is reflective of the Kardashians' Armenian heritage.

In the spring of 2010, she and her sisters released a clothing line for Bebe. In August 2010, Kardashian announced that she and her sisters were working on another clothing line called K-Dash, sold on QVC.

Kourtney and her sisters created a sunless tanner called Kardashian Glamour Tan in 2010. Kourtney wrote the book "Kardashian Konfidential" with her sisters Khloe and Kim; it was released in November 2010.

Personal life

Kourtney began dating Scott Disick in 2006. The couple have two children: son Mason Dash Disick (born 14 December 2009) and daughter Penelope Scotland Disick (born 8 July 2012). However, on August 9, 2013, model Michael Girgenti filed a paternity suit against Disick, claiming that he was the father of her son Mason. On August 15, 2013, it was revealed through a DNA test that Scott Disick was Mason's father, dismissing Girgenti's claims. Kourtney claimed that she and Girgenti hadn't even had any sexual relations and released a statement saying: "'After three-and-a-half years of lies being spread by an individual I met briefly at a photo shoot, I am setting the record straight that Scott is Mason's father. While it saddens me to have to address these ridiculous lies - especially when the truth was never in doubt - this story must be put to rest."